Xiaomi Auto has put a humanoid robot on the production line at one of its Chinese assembly plants, becoming the third major automaker after Tesla and BMW to run bipedal humanoids through live vehicle manufacturing, according to a report carried by eletric-vehicles.com.

The report provides no plant identification, robot model, workstation detail, or staffing scope. Xiaomi Auto has not yet issued a press release corroborating the deployment, and Autoplant Brief could not independently confirm the program. The headline-level summary places Xiaomi alongside a small cohort of automakers testing bipedal humanoids outside the laboratory.

Where does Xiaomi's robot program sit?

Xiaomi launched series production of the SU7 electric sedan at its Beijing Yizhuang plant in 2024. A second facility on the same Beijing corridor is reported to be ramping toward a planned annual capacity of about 150,000 vehicles. Xiaomi Auto disclosed a delivery target it has tied to the SU7 and the YU7 crossover.

The company has framed its auto venture as an extension of its consumer-electronics platform, and the humanoid deployment — if confirmed — would fit a cross-divisional robotics strategy that already spans CyberOne, a bipedal humanoid Xiaomi unveiled in 2022.

How does the move compare to Tesla and BMW?

• Tesla has run trials of its Optimus platform at Gigafactory Texas and Fremont, with footage showing units moving parts and sorting components.
• BMW has piloted Figure AI's humanoid at its Spartanburg, South Carolina assembly plant, which produces the X5, X6, X7 and XM SUVs.
• Hyundai owns Boston Dynamics, though factory-floor deployment of the Atlas robot on vehicle assembly has not been publicly confirmed.

Xiaomi's reported entry makes it the first Chinese automaker publicly named in that list, and the first EV-only manufacturer among the three confirmed trialists.

What does the robot actually do?

The source does not specify tasks. In comparable pilots, bipedal humanoids have been assigned lightweight, dexterity-driven duties: parts pickup from bins, subassembly placement, kitting, and inspection handoffs. Heavy lifting, welding, and paint remain the domain of fixed industrial arms.

Cycle-time data remains the gating metric. Without sustained uptime figures, bipedal humanoids remain a demonstration asset rather than a production tool.

What to watch next

• A formal statement from Xiaomi Auto naming the plant, robot platform, and pilot scope.
• Cycle-time and uptime disclosures that would convert the deployment from pilot to line-role.
• Moves by Chinese EV peers BYD, Nio, and Xpeng, all of which have explored humanoid partnerships, to follow with named pilots.
• Whether Tesla moves Optimus beyond internal trials into customer-delivered units through 2025.

Humanoid factory workers remain a story told mostly through demonstrations rather than output data. Xiaomi's reported line deployment, if confirmed, adds a third OEM name to a list that still measures progress in pilots, not volumes.